Car roof



C. D. BONSALL CAR ROOF Filed March 5, 1953 March i7, 1936.

Patented Mar. 17, 1936 2,034,382

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFIQE CAR ,ROOF

Charles David Bonsall, Pittsburgh, Pa., assignor to P. H. Murphy Company, New Kensington, Pa., a corporation of Pennsylvania Application March 3, 1933, Serial No. 659,490

6 Claims. (Cl. 10S-5.4)

It is quite common to load certain commodities, which furnishes the material (preferably steel of such as flour and cement, into freight cars, while high tensile strength) for lling out any space they are still hot from the process of manufacture, there may be between the parts that are being with the result vthat the roofs of the cars somewelded together.

times sweat enough to cause considerable The adjacent sheets or panels 2 of the lower damage to such commodities. One of the princiseries are similarly spaced apart and welded, as pal objects of the present invention is to minimize at 8, together and to the underside of the lower such sweating. Other objects are to protect the flange 6 of the web member 4. In practice, it is lading from rapid changes of temperature and preferable to assemble the roof sheets l and 2 10 to design a construction of roof that will be and web members 4 in jigs apart from the car 10 economical of material and labor, of great frame and weld them all together into a unitary strength and will have advantages hereinafter construction which is applied as a unit to the appearing. car frame.

The invention consists in the parts and in the The roof above described is light and strong if, arrangements and combinations of parts hereinand its parts are very simple, easy and inexpensive after described and claimed. to make. It is noted that the sheets l and 2 In the accompanying drawing, which forms are plain flat sheets without any ribs or flanges, part of this specication, and wherein like referthat they have no bolt or rivet holes, and do not ence numerals refer to like parts Wherever they require to be sheared to accurate width. It is occur, also noted that the welds 'l and 8 are continuous, 20

Fig. 1 is a plan view of a portion of a cellular watertight and stronger than the other parts of car roof embodying my invention, the sheets. The cellular structure of the roof,

Fig. 2 is an enlarged vertical transverse sectogether with the welding thereof, not only gives tion through one-half of the roof on the line 2-2 it great strength but permits the use of relatively in Fig. l, thin material. Besides, such cellular structure 25 Fig. 3 is an enlarged vertical longitudinal secgives the roof an insulating capacity which so tion through the roof on the line 3-3 in Fig. 1, greatly retards the transmission of heat thereand through as to make a car equipped with such Fig. 4 is a section similar to Fig. 3, illustrating roof suitable for handling commodities, like flour an insulated web member. and cement, which are loaded hot and liable to 30 The construction illustrated in Fig. 1 comprises cause sweating. This is true, because sweating an upper series of roof sheets or panels I that in the case of such commodities is occasioned by span from side plate 3 to side plate 3 of the car the relatively warm moisture laden air coming in and a lower series of roof sheets or panels 2 which Contact with the cold roof. The conditions which likewise span from side plate to side plate of produce sweating occur, for instance, when on a 35 the car, both series of sheets having their ends cold, humid day the empty car is run inside a secured to said side plates. Interposed between relatively warm building to be laden and is then the upper sheets l and the lower sheets 2 is a series promptly shifted to the outside. Due to infiltraof web members 4. In the design shown in Fig. 3, tion, there is a continuous tendency for the humid these web members are separate pieces of Z-form, air of the car to be replaced with the less humid 40 that is, they are shown with a vertically disposed air from outside, and the roof will not sweat if body portion having a horizontal ilange 5 exthe temperature of the lower roof sheets decreases tending laterally from the top thereof and a more slowly than the decrease of humidity of flange t at the bottom thereof extending laterally the air inside the car. Thus, for such commodiin the opposite direction. These web members 4 ties as flour and cement, which are not sensitive 45 extend from side plate to side plate of the car to freezing, the relatively inexpensive roof above and have their ends secured thereto. The sheets described is as satisfactory as more thoroughly l of the upper series are arranged in the same insulated roofs which are much more expensive. plane with their side edges somewhat spaced apart In the construction above described, the web but fairly close together and resting upon the member4 isasingle piece of pressed metal. With 50 upper flanges 5 of the web members 4. Adjacent the web member made in a single piece, there is sheets l of the upper series are welded, as at l, direct heat conduction between the inside of the together and to the upper flange 5 of the adcar and the outside thereof. In order to interjacent web member 4. Such welding is preferrupt such direct conduction, the web member may ably done electrically by means of a welding rod be made in two pieces 9 of angular form with 55 their vertical portions wide enough to overlap and with a strip or layer of suitable insulation I0, such, for instance, as asbestos iiber, interposed between them, the two parts being secured together by welding or by horizontal bolts or rivets Il, as illustrated in Fig. 4 The interposition of this insulating material l greatly in- Y creases the insulating propertyrof the roof as a whole and greatly prolongs the time required to equalize the temperatures on the inside and the outside of the car. Thus, the use of such insulated Web members fits the car for use in hauling many commodities that now require more expensive refrigerator cars.

Reference is hereby made to my copending applications Serial No. 27,524 iiled June 20, 1935, and Serial No. 27,848 filed June 22, 1935, covering the subject matter as divided out of this application.

What I claim is;

1. A car roof comprising roof. sheets arranged alongside of one another but somewhat spaced apart at an upper level and roof sheets arranged alongside of one another but somewhat spaced apart at a lower level, Z-shaped members underlying the margins of adjacent upper sheets and overlying the margins of adjacent lower sheets and welds uniting the edges of adjacent sheets together and to said members.

2. A car roof comprising roof sheets arranged alongside or" one another at an upper level and roof sheets arranged alongside of one another at a lower level, members in contact with sheetsv of both levels, and welds uniting the sheets to said members, said members comprising an upper part and a lower part secured together with insulating material interposed between them.

3. A car roof comprising roof sheets arranged alongside of one another but somewhat spaced apart at an upper level and roof sheets arranged alongside of one another but somewhat spaced apart at a lower level, Z-shaped members underlying the margins of adjacent upper sheets and overlying the margins of adjacent lower sheets and welds uniting the edges of. adjacent sheets together and to said members, said members comprising an angular upper part and an angular lower part arranged with their vertical legs lapping and secured together with insulating material interposed between them.

4. A car roof constituting a self-supporting structure capable of application as a unit to the side plates of a car, said roof comprising roof sheets arranged alongside of one another but somewhat spaced apart at an upper level and roof sheets arranged alongside of one another but somewhat spaced apart at a lower level, separate web members of pressed metal with verti-A cally disposed body portions with iiat top portions extending laterally therefrom and spanning the spaces between adjacent sheets of the upper level and with at flanged bottom portions spanning the spaces between adjacent sheets of the lower level and welds uniting the edges of adjacent sheets together and to said members continuously from side to side of the roof.

5. As an article of manufacture, a web member ror cellular car roofs, said member consisting of three parts secured together, two of said parts being made of metal adapted for attachment to the top and bottom, respectively, of the cellular car roof and the third part being a strip of insulating material interposed between said metal parts.

6. As an article of manufacture, a web member for cellular car roofs, consisting of three members secured together, two of said members being metal members of angular form adapted for attachment to the top and bottom, respectively, of the cellular car roof and the third part consisting of a strip of insulating material interposed between them.

CHARLES DAVID BONSALL. 

